One dead after bridge collapses in Tamluk

A labourer died and another was injured after a bridge collapsed during its repair work at Tamluk in East Midnapore on Wednesday afternoon.

According to sources, the condition of the 53-year-old bridge over a canal in Tamluk’s Ward 14 was very bad. Recently, the repair work started and during the work on Wednesday afternoon, a portion of the bridge collapsed. Two labourers identified as Sheikh Saiful and Sheikh Shah Alam got stuck under the debris.

Initially other labourers started a rescue operation. Though they were able to rescue Saiful, however, they failed to reach Alam. The second labourer was trapped under the debris for quite a long time.

To ensure that he stays alive, oxygen was sent through a pipe. After almost five hours, Alam was rescued after removing the debris under which he got stuck using a tractor front-end loader and rushed to Tamluk Hospital where he was declared brought dead. Saiful was admitted in the same hospital.

District Magistrate (DM) of East Midnapore, Purnendu Maji went to the spot and took stock of the situation. He reportedly said that an inquiry will be done to find out whether there was any negligence on behalf of the contractor who had got the tender to repair the bridge.